thoroughbred_racingfandomcom-20200214-history
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I thoroughbred stakes race for three-year-old racehorses, ran annually on the first Saturday in May at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. It is one and a quarter miles (2 km), during which colts and geldings carry 126 pounds (57 kilograms) and fillies carry 121 (55 kilograms). In the United States, the race is nicknamed "The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports", because of its approximate length; and "The Run for the Roses," because the winner receives a blanket of roses. It is the first leg in the U.S. Triple Crown, followed by the Preakness Stakes two weeks later, and the Belmont Stakes three weeks after that. To win the Triple Crown, a horse must win all three of these races, a difficult challenge which only eleven horses have ever accomplished. The race has been run every year since 1875. History In 1882, Col Merriweather Lewis Clark, Jr., grandson of William Clark of the Lewis and Clark expedition, traveled to England , visiting the Derby, a famous race that had been running anually from 1870. From there, Clark went on to Paris, France, where in 1863, a group of racing enthusiasts had formed the French Jockey Club and had organized the Longchamps, which at that time was the greatest race in France. Returning home to Kentucky, Clark organized the Louisville Jockey Club for the purpose of raising money to build quality racing facilities just outside the city. The track would soon become known as Churchill Downs, named for John and Henry Churchill, who had provided the land for the track. Officially, the racetrack was incorporated as Churchill Downs in 1937. The Kentucky Derby was first run at 1-1/2 miles (2.4 kilometers), the same distance as the Epsom Derby. In 1896, the distance was changed to its current 1-1/4 miles (2 kilometers). On May 17, 1875, in front of an estimated crowd of 10,000 people, a field of fifteen three-year-old horses contested the rainbow for the first Derby. Under jockey Oliver Lewis, a colt named Aristides, who was trained by future Hall of Famer Ansel Williamson, won the inaugural Derby. Later that year, Lewis rode Aristides to a second-place finish in the Belmont Stakes. Although the first race meet proved a success, the track ran into financial difficulties and in 1894 the New Louisville Jockey Club was incorporated with new capitilization and imporoved facilities. Despite this, the business flounded until 1902 when Col. Matt Winn of Louisville put together a syndicate of businessmen to acquire the facility. Under Winn, Churchill Downs prospered and the Kentucky Derby then became the preeminent stakes race for three-year-old thoroughbred racehorses in North America. Between 1875 and 1902, African-American jockeys won 15 of the 28 runnings of the Kentucky Derby. On May 11, 1892, African-American jockey Alonzo "Lonnie" Clayton, age 15, became the youngest rider to win the Derby. The 1904 race was won by Elwood, the first Derby starter and winner owned by a woman, Laska Durnell. In 1915, Regret became the first filly to win the Kentucky Derby (of only three in the history of the race), and in 1917, the English-bred colt "Omar Khayyam" became the first foreign-bred horse to win the race. Derby participants are limited to three-year-old horses. No horse since Apollo in 1882 has won the Derby without racing at age two. Thoroughbred owners began sending their successful Derby horses to compete a few weeks later in the Preakness Stakes at the Pimlico Race Course, in Baltimore, Maryland, followed by the Belmont Stakes in Elmont, New York. The three races offered the largest purse and in 1919, Sir Barton became the first horse to win all three races. However, the term Triple Crown didn't come into use for another eleven years. In 1930, when Gallant Fox became the second to win all three races, sportwriter Charles Hatton brought the phrase into usage. Fueled by the media, public interest in the possibility of a "superhorse" that could win the Triple Crown began in the weeks leading up to the Derby. Two years after the term was coined, the race, which had been run in mid-May since inception, was changed to the first Saturday in May to allow for a specific schedule for the Triple Crown races. Since 1931, the order of Triple Crown races has been the Kentucky Derby first, followed by the Preakness Stakes and then the Belmont Stakes. Prior to 1931, the Preakness was run eleven times before the Derby. On May 12, 1917, and again on May 13, 1922, the Preakness and the Derby were run on the same day. On eleven occasions, the Belmont Stakes was run before the Preakness Stakes. On May 16, 1925, the first live radio broadcast of the Kentucky Derby was originated by WHAS and was also carried by WGN in Chicago. On May 3, 1952, the first national television coverage of the Kentucky Derby took place, aired from then-CBS affiliate WHAS-TV. In 1954, the purse exceeded $100,000 for the first time. In 1968, Dancer's Image became the first (and to this day the only) horse to win the race and be disqualified after traces of phenylbutazone, an analgesic and anti-inflammitory drug, were found in the horses urinalysis; Forward Pass won a after a protracted legal battle by the owners of Dancer's Image (which they lost). Forward Pass thus became the eighth winner for Calumet Farm. Unexpectedly, the regulations at Kentucky thoroughbred race tracks were changed some years later, allowing horses to run on phenylbutazone. In 1970, Diane Crump became the first female jockey to ride in the Derby, finishing fifteenth aboard Fathom. The fastest time ever run in the Derby (at its present distance) was set in 1973 at 1:59 2/5, when Secretariat broke the record set by Northern Dancer in 1964. Not only has Secretariat's world record never been broken, he did something unique for Triple Crown races: he ran each quarter faster than the one before it. Though times for non-winners were not recorded, Sham finished second two and a half lengths behind Secretariat in the same race. Using the thoroughbred racing convention of one length equaling one-fifth of a second to calculate Sham's time, he also finished in under two minutes. Another sub-two-minute finish, only the third, was set in 2008 by Monarchos at 1:59.97. The 2004 Derby marked the first time that jockeys, as a result of a court order, were allowed to wear corporate advertising logos on their clothing. In 2005, the purse distribution for the Derby was changed, so that horses finishing fifth would receive a share of the purse; previously only the first four finishers did so. Norman Adams has been the designer of the Kentucky Derby Logo since 2002. On February 1, 2006, the Louisville-based fast-food company Yum! Brands, Inc. announced a corporate sponsorship deal to call the race "The Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands." In 2007, HM Queen Elizabeth II, on a visit to the United States, joined the racegoers at Churchill Downs. In 2010, Calvin Borel set a new record, being the first jockey to win three of four consecutive Kentucky Derbys. Records Most wins by a jockey *5 - Eddie Arcaro (1938, 1941, 1945, 1948, 1952) *5 - Bill Hartack (1957, 1960, 1962, 1964, 1969) Most wins by a trainer *6 - Ben A. Jones (1938, 1941, 1944, 1948, 1949, 1952) Most wins by an owner *8 - Calumet Farm (1941, 1944, 1948, 1949, 1952, 1957, 1958, 1968) Stakes Record *1:59.40 - Secretariat (1973) Margin of Victory *8 lengths - Assault (1946) *8 lengths - Whirlaway (1941) 'Longest Shot to win the Derby ' *91 to 1 - Donerail Winners An * designates a Triple Crown winner. A ** designates a filly. Category:Races Category:Triple Crown Races Category:Stakes races Category:Grade I races Category:Races in the United States Category:Graded stakes races in the United States Category:Grade I stakes races in the United States Category:Articles with Wikipedia content